Bridge cranes load containers to a cargo ship at the Qingdao Free Trade Zone in Qingdao, Shandong province, China on April 15, 2025.
CFOTO/Future Publishing/Getty Images
hide caption
toggle caption
CFOTO/Future Publishing/Getty Images
Bridge cranes load containers to a cargo ship at the Qingdao Free Trade Zone in Qingdao, Shandong province, China on April 15, 2025.
CFOTO/Future Publishing/Getty Images
When it comes to the cost of raising a child from infancy to the age of 17 in the United States – it’s hard to settle on a precise figure.
There’s one thing we do know – it’s going to be expensive.
By some estimates, raising a kid, who was born in 2015, could cost a middle class family close to $320,000 over 17 years.
That money goes to childcare, healthcare, food, clothes, education, transportation, activities, toys, and a lot more. All of those things will be affected – one way or another – by the Trump administration’s tariff policy.
And the companies that sell products geared at those raising kids – they’re going to feel the pinch as well. One CEO argues it could even mean certain products will become unavailable.
Being a parent in the U.S. is already expensive. Slapping tariffs on the products kids use could make it more so.
For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.
Email us at [email protected].
This episode was produced by Brianna Scott, with audio engineering by Tiffany Vera Castro, Ted Mebane and Simon-Laslo Janssen. It was edited by Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.
